FormerFF

I have a Burley Piccolo. I've been using an old MTB on city tires to pull it. It's worked great, but it is 15 years old and needs about $300 in parts to bring it up to spec. So, I'm going to get something new. I have an old, but very serviceable road bike to use when I want to get out by myself and cover some ground. This bike would be used for towing the trailercycle, going to the store, goofing around the neighborhood with the kids, and for rides where I don't feel like riding a drop bar bike.

So what are y'all using to pull your trailercycles? Any particular recommendations, like wheel and tire size? The roads here are smooth, but it's hilly, so I need some low gears but don't need suspension. Obviously, I want something stable. I've been thinking about either a Trek 7.3 FX or an SU200, a Cannondale Road Warrior 400, and a Specialized Globe or Globe Sport.

HandsomeRyan

maybe i don't understand-

you use a bike and bike mounted trailer to haul a second bike?

To a n00b like me, that is both confusing and unbelievably awesome all at the same time.

FormerFF

No, a trailercycle is like a half a bicycle that attaches to an adult bicycle. Here's an example:

https://www2.trekbikes.com/bikes/bike...eid=80768&f=38

HandsomeRyan

oh, okay!

how many of those can you pigtail together? Make a bicycle train!

FormerFF

Just one - unless you're a truck driver.

gcl8a

A short train:

https://www.mip.sdu.dk/~glewin/cyklin.../Page1241.html

The longest I've seen was a tandem bike with mom and dad, pulling a _tandem_ ride-behind with two girls, pulling a trailer with the family dog.

HandsomeRyan

my appologies for the threadjack. that is ridiculously cool though.

DiabloScott

I use an urbanized mountain bike as well. I like the extra leverage I get from the wide handlebars and extensions. This is my winter commuter so it's got lights and fenders that come in handy sometimes too.

Kobe 

I love the mini-me.

I have been using a Giant Cypress hybdid to tow. The only problem is my frame and seatpost are so high my daughter looks like she's riding a wheelie. So we usually attach it to my wife's bike and I pull the chariot(with 2 kids).

Fonk

I don't have a trailer cycle yet, as my daughter's still too young for that, but I do have a Burley trailer. I ride whatever bike I feel like riding that day. I have a road, cross, and mtn bike, and have used them all with the trailer with no problems. The cross (2005 Bianchi Axis) is probably my favorite though - has the road bike pluses of drop bars and 700C tires, but has a triple (48/36/26) w/ mtn bike gearing on the back, which I definitely appreciate when I'm towing her back up the 3-mile, 1000-ft-elevation-gain hill back to my house at the end of the ride.

DiabloScott

The Bike Friday catalogue has a photo of a foldable triple pulling a trailer cycle - see page 16:
https://www.bikefriday.com/DocumentLi...atalog_web.pdf

gcl8a

To answer the original question...

The piccolo attaches via a rack, yes? I think any decent MTB or touring type bike will work fine, so long as it has good rack mount options. I suppose you could consider disc brakes for added stopping power (do disc brakes work better when it's wet out?)

Out of curiosity, is the attachment of the piccolo pretty 'positive'? I ask because we have a cheaper Danish brand (Kildemoes) and there's just enough slop in the attachment bracket that my daughter swings from side-to-side a bit much. I've thought about getting/making some shims, but I can get a decent price on the Piccolo from the Danish Cycling Federation, and all this kroner is burning a hole in my pocket.

FormerFF

The Piccolo is the only trailerbike I've used, so I can't compare it to any other, but in my experience, the connection between the Piccolo and the Moose Rack is 100% solid, no play whatsoever. The only side to side motion I've ever gotten was provided by the stoker. The Piccolo is now out of production, at least for a while, so I'd grab one if it is available. Plus, when your children outgrow it, it has a great resale value.

On the disc brake idea, I believe that the Moose Rack, which is needed to pull the Piccolo, would interfere with the disc brake mount. It's my understanding that discs are better in wet conditions, but I wouldn't take my daughters out in the rain anyway.

Back to the bike question. I'm looking at a Trek SU100 and 7.3 FX, and a Cannondale Road Warrior 400 and Bad Boy. I'm having a hard time finding some of these, they don't seem to be very popular in this part of the world. So far, I've found the 7.3 FX and the Bad Boy. The Trek is a lot less money, but the Bad Boy is really slick and exudes quality. Plus, the Trek frame is made in China, where the Cannondale one is made in the US, and I'm kind of less than thrilled with the prospect of buying more Made In China stuff than I have to.

masiman

You could add a front disc brake only. The front is providing the majority of your braking power anyway. People have made modifications (countersunk heads, bending rack arms, etc.) so that a rear disk can be used in conjunction with racks. Although I do not recall if anyone did mods using a moose rack. I think there are some rack and disk setups that do not require mods.

OperationOrange

Well, I just bought a Burley D'lite tonight, so I can't give you any impressions, but I'll keep you posted. I plan to take it out this weekend.

I'll be pulling it behind my Novara Randonee, which I think is a pretty good bet for a trailerbike. MTB gearing, 700c wider touring tires, good solid build.

If I were looking strictly for a trailerbike, I would look at touring bikes like the Randonee, Trek 520, etc, and I would look at cyclocross bikes. A buddy of mine just bought a Specialized Tri-Cross, and it is super sweet. Exact same components as the Randonee, but with a sweet aluminum frame + carbon fork. It's so much snappier...

FormerFF

Decision made: Cannondale Bad Boy.

How did I rationalize going from buying $300 in parts to a $675 new bike? I've been riding since 1974, and this will be the third bike I've bought. The Cannondale just felt solid, it had the stance I like. It has great low speed stability, and I liked the way the brakes felt. Plus, that frame is just too cool. I'f I ride it for the next 15 years like I did the last one, hey that's less than $50 per year, right?

Besides, I have to have something safe to tow the kids. Yeah, that's it.

masiman

A nice looking bike. Which model did you get? Bikes really are quite cheap relative to the use and benefit you get from them. Even if you only rode it for 10 years, it would still probably be worth it. If that is the bike that will encourage you to get out more with the kids then it is the right bike.

Congrats on the bike. It should give you many great miles.

FormerFF

I got the regular Bad Boy. Disc brakes would interfere with the Burley rack. Although, I could fit just the front disc like you suggested.

I bought my first bike in 1984. It's a steel framed Trek, with a Reynolds 531CS tubeset and a Shimano 600 group. It was $489. I still ride it. The bike that the Bad Boy is replacing is a 1990 Trek 950, which is made of True Temper CrMo, and has a Deore LX group. It was $495. Now, 17 years later the Bad Boy was $675. Granted, its derailers are not as far up the food chain as the ones on either of the Treks, but it's still a pretty impressive value.

In case you were wondering what I rode before the Treks, my sister had a Raleigh Super Course that she was badly injured on. It was repaired and I rode it from then on until just before I graduated from high school, when that damnable plastic Simplex derailer folded up and locked the rear wheel, tossing me off high side.

That Bad Boy, it's got something going on. When I got on it, I completely forgot about everything else I'd looked at. Kind of like when I met my wife.

masiman

lol on the forgetting everything else. Sounds like the perfect bike for you. When someone is amazed at how much I have spent on a bike I tell them that I drive a used small car that costs probably 1/4 of what they drive. Plus it keeps me fit and active with the kids. Why wouldn't I want spend that much? Very cheap for the thrills it gives.

I'm sorry your sister got hurt riding, I hope there was nothing permanent.

OperationOrange

Awesome bike! Good choice!

DiscIllusioned

I've used an early 2000's Cannondale Cad 4 Bad Boy with Julie Magura disc brakes, that I bought new from a Cannondale dealer, which I set up with Michelin 26 x 1.75 hybrid tires on the original mountain bike rims/wheels. It works great, except that the rear brake hanger [hope that's the right word for what the caliper attaches to, to unite with the frame] was apparently slightly misaligned on manufacture causing the rear disc to hang up [the wheel free spins roughly 1.5 rotations before stopping]. It’s definitely good exercise; …except when you're towing 60+ pounds you don't need any additional exercise. Good luck out there.

CliffordK

Well, hopefully the OP has waited 8 years for the advice on what to tow his youngster around with.
I used my Colnago Super to tow around my nephew on an Alley Cat Shadow. But, probably have only used it for 35 miles of unloaded riding, and maybe 10 miles of loaded riding. He was still learning bicycling, and I never found the setup felt too stable with a larger kid.

dwmckee

We mainly tow ours with a CoMotion tandem... My little one could still throw us around but not nearly as much as on the single bike..

dwmckee

OMG! I'll have to look more closely before I chime in next time...

cplager

I use my (converted) 20" folder. I use it to tow both a single and a double trail-a-bike.